Dear Reader:

Worldometer(Nov 12): there are close to 53 million cases and close to 1.3 million deaths worldwide. Getting closer to 11 million cases and closer to a quarter million deaths in the U.S. Of the close to 7 million closed cases in the U.S., 96% recovered and 4% died.

Yesterday there was another all-time pandemic high record of new cases in the U.S.: close to 143 thousand new cases. Also yesterday, there was a new pandemic third-wave record high of new deaths: 1,479.

The Wall Street Journal, States impose flurry of measures as Covid cases surge(Nov 12): “States are slapping new restrictions on daily life as the coronavirus rages in a resurgence that some officials say is the most widespread and intense since the pandemic hit in March.

“Governors in New York, Maryland, Minnesota, Iowa, Utah and other states have imposed measures as U.S. cases hit another high Wednesday, topping 100,000 for the ninth day in a row, while hospitalizations rose to a record 65,386, according to the Covid Tracking Project. ‘It’s on fire. We’ve got to slow it down,’ Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine said in an interview Wednesday evening. ‘We’ve never seen anything like this. Our spring surge and summer surge were nowhere like this.’.

“While governments in Europe and the U.K. have recently imposed broad lockdown measures as coronavirus cases rise, many states have so far resisted full lockdowns, saying that they know more about how the virus spreads, and how to prepare hospitals, than they did in the spring, and that they want to avoid hurting struggling businesses and households…

“Many officials attribute rising cases to growing complacency in travel and social settings such as bars and house parties. The virus ‘will not move on just because we want to get back to our normal pre-Covid lives,’ Maryland Republican Gov. Larry Hogan said in a news conference where he announced new directives… Mr. Hogan said actions stem from contact tracing that indicates infections most commonly spring from family gatherings and house parties. Additionally, among those who have tested positive there is a notable increase of people who had recently dined indoors at a restaurant, traveled out of state or worked outside the home, he said. ‘We’re trying to keep people employed, we’re trying to keep small businesses from failing, and going under, but we also are trying to keep people alive and that’s the delicate balance,’ Mr. Hogan said.

“In California, a total of 11 counties were put under more restrictive guidelines because of rising cases this week, including some of the state’s more populated areas, including Sacramento and San Diego. ‘We anticipate if things stay the way they are, that between this week and next week over half of California counties will have moved into a more restrictive tier,’ California Health and Human Services Secretary Dr. Mark Ghaly said in a press conference. ‘That certainly is an indication that we’re concerned and that we have to keep a close watch.’… On Wednesday, the California Department of Public Health said that hospitalizations increased by 31.6% over the past 14-day period, and that intensive-care-unit hospitalization also increased, by 29.7%…

“In New York, the springtime center of the pandemic in the U.S., Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced a 10 p.m. curfew for most bars and restaurants and will limit gatherings at private residences to 10 people. ‘If these measures are not sufficient to slow the spread, we will reduce—we will turn the valve more, and part of that would be reducing the number of people in indoor dining,’ the Democratic governor said in a conference call Wednesday. ‘If that doesn’t work, if these numbers keep going crazy—you have some scientists who believe we’ll go back to a closedown. I’m praying that doesn’t happen.’…

“Governors are also preparing for a change in tone about the pandemic from the White House. President-elect Joe Biden has said he would urge every governor to mandate masks—a shift from President Trump, who has often dismissed mask-wearing. Utah Republican Gov. Gary Herbert on Sunday announced a statewide mask mandate. Masks ‘do not negatively affect the economy,” he said, adding, “we cannot afford to debate this issue any longer.’ ‘Laws are put in places to protect all of us,’ he said. ‘That’s why we have traffic lights, speed limits and seat belts, and that’s why we now have a mask mandate.’..

“Masks help protect both wearers and those around them, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said in new guidance Tuesday.”

anita

Dear Reader:

Worldometer (Nov 16): almost 140 thousand new cases yesterday (almost 190 thousand new cases was the all-time pandemic record high of new cases, and that was three days ago, on Nov 13), and 656 new deaths (1,483 new deaths was the third/ winter wave pandemic record high of new deaths, and that was six days ago, on Nov 10).

Yesterday- there were almost 34 thousand new cases and 546 new deaths in Italy, over 30 thousand new cases and 435 new deaths in India, over 27 thousand new cases and 302 new deaths in France, almost 25 thousand new cases and 168 new deaths in the UK, over 22 thousand new cases and 352 new deaths in Russia, close to 22 thousand new cases and 303 new deaths in Poland, and over 14 thousand new cases and 73 new deaths in Germany,

CNN, Moderna coronavirus vaccine is 94.5% effective, according to company data, Nov 16: “The Moderna vaccine is 94.5% effective against coronavirus, according to early data released Monday by the company, making it the second vaccine in the United States to have a stunningly high success rate. ‘These are obviously very exciting results,’ said Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation’s top infectious disease doctor. ‘It’s just as good as it gets — 94.5% is truly outstanding.’… Vaccinations could begin in the second half of December, Fauci said. Vaccinations are expected to begin with high-risk groups and to be available for the rest of the population next spring…

“The company says its vaccine did not have any serious side effects. A small percentage of those who received it experienced symptoms such as body aches and headaches. Moderna plans to apply to the US Food and Drug Administration for authorization of its vaccine soon after it accumulates more safety data later this month. Fauci says he expects the first Covid-19 vaccinations to begin ‘towards the latter part of December, rather than the early part of December.’

“Initially, there won’t be enough vaccine for everyone. The highest priority groups, which include health care workers, the elderly, and people with underlying medical conditions, will get the vaccine first. ‘I think that everybody else will start to get vaccinated towards the end of April,’ Fauci said. ‘And that will go into May, June, July. It will take a couple of months to do.’…

“While the two vaccines appear to have very similar safety and efficacy profiles, Moderna’s vaccine has a significant practical advantage over Pfizer’s. Pfizer’s vaccine has to be kept at minus 75 degrees Celsius. No other vaccine in the US needs to be kept that cold, and doctors’ offices and pharmacies do not have freezers that go that low. Moderna’s vaccine can be kept at minus 20 degrees Celsius. Other vaccines, such as the one against chickenpox, need to be kept at that temperature.

That means Moderna’s vaccine can be kept in ‘a readily available freezer that is available in most doctors’ offices and pharmacies,’..  Another advantage of Moderna’s vaccine is that it can be kept for 30 days in the refrigerator, the company announced Monday. Pfizer’s vaccine can last only five days in the refrigerator.”

anita

Dear Reader/ almaraya:

Thank you almaraya for bringing the issue to my attention.

CNN, Denmark mink Covid crisis worsens,Nov 7: “The United Kingdom has banned travelers from Denmark after the country reported a widespread outbreak of a new variant of the virus which causes Covid-19 in mink farms. The development came days after the Danish government announced it planned to cull the nation’s entire mink population in order to contain the spread. There are between 15 and 17 million mink in Denmark, whereas its human population stands at around 5.5 million.

“The ban came into place at 4 a.m. Saturday and means travelers from Denmark cannot enter the UK, the government said in a statement. British nationals returning home will be forced to quarantine for two weeks and, unlike other quarantine requirements for travelers entering the UK, there will be no exemptions… Denmark announced it would cull its entire mink population after it discovered evidence that the disease that causes novel coronavirus had mutated in mink, after being passed on by humans. The new variant was also found to have spread to humans, with 214 confirmed infections as of Friday…The virus has mutated in mink. The mutated virus has spread to humans…

“90,000 mink were slain in Spain over the summer after an outbreak at a farm, after which several human workers at the farm were infected. In June, Reuters also reported that 10,000 mother mink and around 50,000 mink pups were gassed to death on a farm in the southern Dutch town of De Mortel, as part of the country’s wider drive to cull around 3,500.”

The US Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) website currently reads: “SARS-CoV-2 has been reported in mink.. on multiple farms in the Netherlands, Denmark, Spain, and the United States. SARS-CoV-2 infection in farmed mink has been characterized by respiratory disease and an increased mortality rate. Because some workers on these farms had symptoms of COVID-19, it is likely that infected farm workers were the source of the mink infections.
Currently, there is no evidence that animals play a significant role in the spread of SARS-CoV-2 to people. However, reports from infected mink farms in the Netherlands suggest that in these environments there is the possibility for spread of SARS-CoV-2 from mink to humans. Additionally, some farm cats and dogs on mink farms in Europe also tested positive for SARS-CoV-2, suggesting they had been exposed to the virus.”

Worldometer (Nov 17): yesterday, there have been more than 162 thousand new cases and 740 new deaths in the U.S., more than 27 thousand new cases and 504 new deaths in Italy, close to 23 thousand new cases (an all-time pandemic high) and 303 new deaths in Russia, more than 21 thousand new cases and 213 new deaths in the UK, close to 21 thousand new cases and 143 new deaths in Poland, close to 13 thousand new cases and 162 new deaths in Spain, close to 5 thousand new cases and 44 new deaths in the Netherlands, almost 1,200 new cases and 4 new deaths in Denmark.

anita

• This reply was modified 4 years ago by .

Dear Reader:

Worldometer, Nov 19: there are over 12 million cases and over a quarter million deaths in the U.S. Yesterday in the U.S.- there were over 176 thousand new cases (a second all-time pandemic record high of new cases in a day), and 1,971 new deaths (the third/ winter wave record high of new deaths in a day, higher than the second/ summer wave pandemic record high of August 1, second all-time pandemic record high of deaths per day).

CNN: US Coronavirus: a top official says hospitalizations and deaths will keep climbing as Covid-19 cases explode nationwide, Nov 19: “…More than 250,000 Americans have so far died of the virus- a higher death toll than any other country — and another 188,000 are projected to lose their lives over the next three and a half months, according to the University of Washington’s Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation. By mid-January, the IHME model predicts more than 2,100 Americans could be dying daily”.

anita

Dear Reader:

Worldometer (Nov 22): Yesterday- there were close to 173 thousand new cases and 1,460 new deaths in the U.S., just over 45 thousand new cases and 499 new deaths in India, over 34 thousand new cases and 692 new deaths in Italy, over 32 thousand new cases and 354 new deaths in Brazil, close to 25 thousand new cases and 467 new deaths  in Russia (both numbers for Russia are all-time pandemic record highs), over 23 thousand new cases and 574 new deaths in Poland..

..close to 20 thousand new cases and 341 new deaths in the UK, close to 18 thousand new cases and 253 new deaths in France, over 16 thousand new cases and 163 new deaths in Germany, over 15 thousand new cases and 328 new deaths in Spain, almost 13 thousand new cases and 431 new deaths in Iran, over 6 thousand new cases and 719 new deaths in Mexico, almost 5 thousand new cases and 72 new deaths in Canada, 386 new cases and 2 new deaths in South Korea, zero new cases and zero new deaths in China.

Reuters, WHO Covid envoy fears third wave, calls Europe response ‘incomplete’ (Nov 22): “‘Now we have the second wave. If they don’t build the necessary infrastructure, we’ll have a third wave early next year,’ said Nabarro, a Briton who campaigned unsuccessfully to become the WHO director general in 2017. Europe briefly enjoyed sinking infection rates that are now surging again: Germany and France on Saturday saw cases rise by 33,000 combined, Switzerland and Austria have thousands of cases daily, while Turkey reported a record 5,532 new infections…

“Nabarro lauded the response of Asian countries like South Korea, where infections are now relatively low: ‘People are fully engaged, they take on behaviours that make it difficult for the virus. They keep their distance, wear masks, isolate when they’re sick, wash hands and surfaces. They protect the most endangered groups.’ Nabarro also said Asia did not relax restrictions prematurely. ‘You must wait until case numbers are low and stay low,” he said. “Europe’s reaction was incomplete.'”

anita

Dear Reader:

Worldometer, Nov 28: Yesterday, there were more than 164 thousand new cases and 1,367 new deaths in the U.S. There were 2,332 new deaths in the U.S., three days ago (Nov 25), the highest number during the current winter wave, and higher than any day during the Summer wave of the pandemic.

Yesterday- there were more than 27 thousand new cases in Russia- the highest number in all of the pandemic, and 496 new deaths, third highest in all of the pandemic. There were more than 28 thousand new cases and 827 new deaths in Italy, only a bit lower than the 921 all time high number of new deaths on March 27.

Still yesterday- there were more than 17 thousand new cases in Poland and in Iran;  579 new deaths in Poland and 406 new deaths in Iran. There were more than 16 thousand new cases in the UK, and 521 new deaths. There were almost 6 thousand new cases in Canada and 95 new deaths.

CNN: US Coronavirus: the country is ’rounding the corner into a calamity,’ expert says, with Covid-19 deaths projected to double soon, Nov 28: As Thanksgiving week draws to an end, more experts are warning the Covid-19 pandemic will likely get much worse in the coming weeks before a possible vaccine begins to offer some relief…The US has now reported more than 100,000 infections every day for 25 consecutive days, with a daily average of more than 166,000 across the last week — almost 2.5 times higher than the summer’s peak counts in July.

“The number of Covid-19 patients in US hospitals is just off record levels: more than 89,800 on Friday, only a few hundred lower than the peak set a day earlier, according to the COVID Tracking Project. And daily Covid-19 deaths in the US have been heading up. The daily average across seven days was 1,477 on Friday. But more than 2,100 deaths were reported on each of the two days prior to Thanksgiving.. ‘If anything, we are rounding the corner into a calamity,’ Wen said. ‘We’re soon going to exceed well more than 2,000 deaths, maybe 3,000, 4,000 deaths every single day here in the US.’..

“More local and state leaders have been reacting to rising cases by announcing stricter restrictions. That includes Los Angeles County, which announced Friday a new stay-at-home order that prohibits all public and private gatherings with people outside a single household…The order will take effect Monday and last through December 20”.

anita

Dear Reader:

Worldometer, Dec 2: In the U.S., moving toward (not there yet) 15 million cases and 300 thousand deaths.

Yesterday, in the U.S., there were over 184 thousand new cases; there were only three days in the whole pandemic with a higher number of new cases, all three days in the current third/ winter wave (Nov 13, 19 and 20).

Yesterday, in the U.S., there were 2,676 new deaths; there were only two days this pandemic with higher numbers of new deaths, both days were in the first/ spring wave (April 15 and April 21).

CNN: US Coronavirus: Hospitalizations hit another record, as official warns of the ‘most difficult time’ in US public health history, Wednesday, Dec 2: “More than 98,600 Covid-19 patients were in US hospitals Tuesday — the most counted during the pandemic.. ‘The reality is, December and January and February are going to be rough times. I actually believe they’re going to be the most difficult time in the public health history of this nation, largely because of the stress that’s going to be put on our health care system,’ Dr. Robert Redfield, the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said Wednesday.

“Hospital systems across the country have for weeks said their capacity and staffing are being stretched too thin, and that patient care may suffer as a result. That includes New Mexico, where the state’s largest health care provider says it is virtually out of open beds — ICU and otherwise — at its nine hospitals. While those hospitals have been stretching capacity — by opening up new areas for beds, creating more double occupancy rooms and bringing in staff from outside its own system — ‘we are out of levers to pull,’ Dr. Jason Mitchell, chief medial officer of Presbyterian Healthcare Services in New Mexico, told CNN. ‘When you run out of resources — whether that’s doctors or nurses or beds or ventilators — you cannot give (the best) care. … We are not there yet (but) we are very close as a state.’…

“But as coronavirus hospitalizations rise, the number of daily deaths is predicted to get worse, with various experts recently warning that it could regularly surpass 2,000 and 3,000, and perhaps approach 4,000.  Health experts say they expect cases and hospitalizations to swell further in the coming weeks, when infections from Thanksgiving gatherings start to manifest.  And the CDC, like it did for Thanksgiving, is recommending that people postpone travel over the upcoming winter holidays, CDC Covid-19 incident manager Dr. Henry Walke said Wednesday.”

anita

Dear Reader:

Worldometer, Dec 4: Yesterday in the U.S. there were more than 218 thousand new cases, yet another all-time pandemic record high of new cases, and 2,918 new deaths.. an all-time pandemic record high of new deaths, getting close to the feared 3 thousands daily deaths.

Yesterday there were close to 51 thousand new cases and 776 new deaths in Brazil;  more than 38 thousand new cases and 570 new deaths in India; more than 28 thousand new cases and 554 new deaths in Russia; more than 23 thousand new cases and 993 new deaths (an all-time pandemic record high of new deaths) in Italy; close to 15 thousand new cases and 414 new deaths in the UK; more than 12 thousand new cases and 324 new deaths in France.

anita